How to get a free phone in Florida for the hearing impaired

1. If you live in Florida and have trouble hearing on the telephone you may qualify for this free service.
2. Here in FL we have the Florida Telecommunications Relay, Inc. Known as FTRI. This is a statewide nonprofit organization that provides special phones for:
Deaf
Hard of Hearing
Deaf/Blind
Speech impaired
Anyone experiencing frustration using the telephone, FTRI may be able to help.
3. Floridians who are eligible:
- Age 3 or Older
- Permanent Florida Resident
- Certified as hard of hearing, deaf, deaf/blind or speech impaired.This program loans out telephone equipment for as long as it is needed. FTRI helps people communicate.
4. Who Pays?
The Florida legislature passed the Telecommunications Access System Act (TASA) in 1991 to make basic telecommunications accessible and affordable for the Hard of Hearing, Deaf, Speech Impaired and Deaf/Blind persons. In response to TASA, the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) directed local exchange telephone companies to form a non profit corporation to fulfill the TASA requirements. FTRI was founded to loan specialized telephone equipment and ring signaling devices to qualified residents of Florida as long as they need it, at no charge.
5. There are a few conditions for those receiving the equipment which will be explained before the delivery of the equipment.These items cannot be sold, given away or loaned to anyone else.
The item must be returned to FTRI if it's no longer needed or if the person moves outside of the state of Florida.
6.
For those living outside of FL, I suggest doing a google search in your state to see if there is a Telecommunications Relay service available.